The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced Jio as the Title Sponsor of the 2020 edition of the Women’s T20 Challenge. The Women’s T-20 Tournament is set to be played in Sharjah during the first week of November. This sponsorship deal will also have the support of Reliance Foundation Education and Sports for All (RF ESA).
It is a historic deal for Women’s cricket in India as BCCI lands the first big sponsor for the T-20 tournament. This deal could open the floodgates for other sponsors and may force BCCI to expand the league with more teams and players.
Jay Shah, Honorary Secretary at BCCI, said, “We look forward to seeing the great women’s sports stories that will be shared as a result of this initiative. We want to support and create concrete ways to grow the pipeline of women talent in Cricket. Our goal with the Women’s T20 Challenge is to build a pathway to a dedicated Women’s’ IPL. Signing an exclusive Title Sponsor for the Women’s T20 Challenge is a great testament to the property, allowing it to be self-sustainable. We believe Jio and RF ESA as Title Sponsors will be strong partners for the Women’s T20 Challenge.”
BCCI president Sourav Ganguly is also hoping that Jio Women’s T20 challenge will inspire more young girls to take up cricket as a career option.
Meanwhile, Nita Ambani also admitted that this deal is a progressive step towards the growth of women’s cricket in India. The Chairperson of Reliance Foundation stressed on the importance of improving the infrastructure of women cricketers in India.